Promoting Creativity & the Arts in South Huron

Grade 10 Mosaic Bench Project

Here are some pictures of the Fall 2015 Grade 10 Visual Arts class at South Huron District High School working on a Concrete Mosaic Bench Project with Dashwood artist Ruth Anne Merner.

How the Benches were made:

intro to mosaics and the concrete bench project with Ruth Anne

students create designs within a template of what they would like benches to look like; design is a simple line drawing like in a colouring book

cut and sort coloured stained glass

lay template on a flat surface and lay small cut glass pieces into the design leaving a small gap between each piece of glass (that is where the concrete will go)

Once all the glass is in place, cover the mosaic with clear mactac, pressing down so all pieces stick to the mactac.

carefully flip the mactac over into an oiled or greased mold. (We used Vaseline)

mix a quantity of sandy concrete thoroughly. Get rid of any lumps. The concrete should be thick like stew

pour concrete into mold and spread gently (mold should be almost half full or a bit less)

tap or bang the mold gently by lifting one end at a time and dropping it: this forces any air bubbles to the surface

lay a section of wire mesh on the poured concrete.

mix and pour a second layer of concrete, this time with more aggregate (a stone concrete)

again, bang or tap out the air bubbles; sign your name in it the next day

let set for 3-4 days, then carefully flip the bench out of the mold – caution: it will be heavy!

clean off any covered areas off to expose the glass, fill any little holes with a bit of the sand mix concrete

let benches cure/dry for a few months

set on concrete legs or metal stands and enjoy!

4 benches were created by the students. Once cured and support structures fabricated, the benches will be installed permanently in the Exeter area – possibly on the McNaughton Trail- though that location is to be determined.